GRACE IS GOD’S MERCY AND FORGIVENESS TOWARDS SINNERS
John 8:1 AMP ‘She answered, No one, Lord! And Jesus said, I do not condemn you either. Go on your way and from now on sin no more.’
This theatrical display of self-righteousness was probably the height of
provocation by the religious folks of Jesus' time who sought to
discredit Him before the public.He was seen as a threat to the
Jewish religious folks whose traditions thrived on inequity and injustice. For example, from the above scripture, nothing
was said of the woman’s male companion;
definitely adultery requires two or more sexual partners. This is
typical of all man-made religion: they are often, exploitative, illogical and inhumane.
Jesus Christ was very consistent
with his mission to save the weak, the scripture says in John 3:17 Amp “For God did not send the Son into
the world in order to judge (to reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the
world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound
through Him. He introduced the ‘dispensation
of grace’ whereby a person’s justification before God is not
premised on their good deeds but upon God’s mercy and forgiveness towards sinners (John1:17) God's word says in Titus 3:5 AMP Bible “He saved us, not because of any works of righteousness
that we had done, but because of His own pity and mercy, by [the] cleansing
[bath] of the new birth (regeneration) and renewing of the Holy Spirit,” If we were to be judged by our
works , nobody will pass the test (Ecc7:20,Rom3:23).
The
Pharisees hated Jesus Christ for this kind of teaching because they taught he
was condoning or practicing sin. His association and defense of sinners was
considered a violation of Jewish religious traditions, such as the stoning to
death of adulteresses (Deut 22:20-22). Contrary to their claim, Jesus did not
condone the sin nor disregard the Law of Moses, He simply taught them that the
Holy Ghost was sufficient to convict an individual of sins and as a result none
of them had the moral justification to pass divine judgment on the adulteress. Their consciences bore witness to the inefficacy of self- righteousness in the administration of justice, that's why they couldn't cast a stone on the guilty woman.
The life of the sinner is unstable, the
scriptures say in Prov 22:12 NLT that “The Lord preserves those with knowledge, but he ruins
the plans of the treacherous.”. It is against this backdrop that it will be wrong to
say that the teaching of grace allows us to continue in sin . Jesus clearly told the woman that a life of habitual sin
was unacceptable before God. He told her “sin no more” meaning, grace does not exempt one from the harmful effect
of sin and through the Holy Ghost we can learn how to better live a more
dignifying and peaceful life. He empowers us to live out what the word of God
teaches about righteousness. The scriptures says in Titus 2:11-13 NKJV “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and
worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present
age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God
and Savior Jesus Christ,” May the lord
put a crown of dignity upon you as you accept His grace today .Amen
-For prayer /counseling call :+234 8098536911,+234 8035536911
email: michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com
-For prayer /counseling call :+234 8098536911,+234 8035536911
email: michaelbensonajayi@gmail.com
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